About Kedma
For thousands of years Jews all over the world have faced eastward during prayer, towards Israel and the rising sun. At the same time, the Jewish people has envisioned itself as a dynamic and forward-moving nation, daily engaging challenges of survival and growth in the modern world. “Kedma” (lit. eastward) stems from the root kedem, which means both east and forward. Kedma is a journal committed to the ideals represented by both of these movements. It is a forum for innovative thinking about the State of Israel, Jewish culture and arts, and diverse Jewish communities and trends. Based in the vibrant community of the University of Pennsylvania, Kedma hopes to encourage intellectually rigorous and varied conversation on campus and beyond.
Kedma was founded at the University of Pennsylvania in the fall of 2005 by Meira Levinson (class of 2006) and Sarah Breger (class of 2007), with the purpose of providing a forum for Penn students and faculty to discuss, debate, and challenge ideas about Judaism, Jewish society, and Israel. Kedma seeks to bridge the political and religious spectrum by providing an open and intellectually honest forum for both Jews and non-Jews, conservatives and liberals. Kedma seeks to engage and excite Jews at Penn who are not normally active within the Jewish community, and to stimulate and challenge those who are. First and foremost, Kedma is a forum for Penn Jews to express their enthusiasm for, and think deeply, about Judaism and Zionism.
For more, read the Editors note from the first issue.
Sponsors
Kedma is made possible through grants from: AVI CHAI Israel Advocacy Grant and Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life; the Azure Student Journals Project, which is supported by the generous gift of Susan and Roger Hertog; Hillel of Greater Philadelphia’s Commission for Campus Project; and Penn Student Activities Council